Film: Ring Master
Director: Vishruth Naik
Cast: Arun Sagar, Shrunga, Anushree and Shwetha
With the premise ‘Guilty conscience pricks the mind’, the story of Ring Master by debutant director Vishruth Naik is a low-key morality drama about the strained bonds that exist in high society and an unfaithful friendship that unspools in the heart of a dysfunctional society. The premise is similar to the recently released Kannada film Aatagara, directed by KM Chaitanya, but sadly, it doesn’t come anywhere close to that film.
Revolving around a disturbing subject, the film tells the story of three friends Rocky, Madhu and Veda (Shrunga, Anushree and Shweta), who plan to usher in New Year at home but get interrupted by a stranger, Bangi Ranga (Arun Sagar). He starts a conversation with them, which gets twisted at some point and the trio are forced to confess their mistakes, which were kept a secret for a long time. Who is Bangi Ranga, why did he think of meeting the three, and will their confessions help them behave better is the crux of Ring Master.
After inflicting upon us, a ludicrous finale, we hope the director is guilt-ridden for a long time for choosing such a subject. The dialogues by Arun Sagar are head-splitting. The original thought is destroyed midway, with the film trying to preach like teacher and punish like a judge. Definitely an overwrought film, the maker should have left its inspiration, the short film Miss Behaviour, alone to tell the story.
Despite an impressive array of talent, the story never engages the audience. Although Arun Sagar has given one of his best performances, actors Shrunga, Anushree and Shwetha have a long way to go. Ravi Basrur’s music brings the film to life to a certain extent while Cinetech Soori’s camerawork seems shoddy.Though true to everybody’s life, Ring Master misses all opportunities to connect morally or emotionally with the audience.